20 November 2025
Playhouse Theatre, Sydney Opera House
Review by Paul Neeson (Arts Wednesday)
Photos by Brett Boardman
Written over 400 years ago, Romeo and Juliet has permeated our culture in ballet, pop music, art, film and literature. And this is due to Shakespeare’s genius in portraying the human condition with timeless acuity in a dramatic theatrical form that we can all relate to. Peter Evans’ production delivers both the comedy and the tragedy efficiently with minimal staging, costumes and fuss – a pared down kit, ideal for touring.
Bell Shakespeare’s extended 3 month national tour of Romeo and Juliet has taken them to nearly every capital city and many regional centres around the country. And now they complete the tour with almost 3 weeks at the Playhouse Theatre in the Sydney Opera House.
The comedy of the first half of the play was in the expert hands of Merrily Eastman (Nurse) and Brittany Santariga (Mercutio). Both actors displayed a clear understanding of the text delivering the double meanings with a wry nod to the audience. Santariga’s acting ability in particular had a captivating physicality that ranged from comical parody to aggression within a space of a few lines. Her vocal range and virtuosity kept us engaged throughout her performance, so that we quickly forget she was playing a male character; to us she embodied a male character. Also of note was Tom Matthews (Tybalt) whose portrayal of the violent youth was edgy and threatening, driving the action inevitably forward to its tragic end. Michael Wahr (Capulet) also engaged the audience with his sometimes surprising vocal techniques. Ryan Hodson (Romeo) had some tender moments where his vulnerability was very moving as was his portrayal of the impetuosity of youth; and Madeline Li (Juliet) tended towards overdelivering her lines with room for more subtlety and nuance in what was an overly breathless performance that added little to the empathy we were expected to feel.
Associate Fight Director, Thomas Royce-Hampton, choreographed some convincing sword play that felt more dangerous than I’m sure it was in reality. The masked ball was refreshing in that the costumes (Anna Tregloan) were a welcome break from the otherwise drab black that dominated the look of the rest of the play. I mean this is 15th Century Verona, a time of opulent silks and velvets. The dark lighting design (Benjamin Cisterne) added to the dour ambience, that had some in the back rows squinting to catch the facial expressions. Interesting that director Peter Evans chose this look of the play (compare this to Baz Luhrman’s 1996 film design) and we can only wonder about his reasoning.
Overall this was a tight production ideal for an extensive national tour. The timeless text of the greatest playwright in the English language and a few standout performances delivered a satisfying night’s entertainment.
You can listen to a recent interview with Tom Matthews below: